5 Best Japanese Dessert Cookbooks

Having a good Japanese dessert cookbook in your home is something special that you want for the occasions like Christmas, New Year Eve, Anniversary, Valentine’s Day, Wedding, or Birthday. Usually, you serve many festive foods to your guests during a festival. You want to serve variety of delicious dishes to surprise your family and guests including new recipes and your traditional ones as we do in Japan. In Japan, I can’t say that Christmas is our main festival but surly is the New Year. We serve different kinds of dishes to our guests from soba noodles to desserts. Today, I want to share the top 5 Japanese dessert cookbooks that I have come across which teach you to learn Wagashi (Japanese Confectionery made from plant ingredients), Suama, Uiro (steam cake), Sweet Rice Cake, Dango (dumplings) and so on. Though, bear in mind that Japanese don’t eat dessert the way you eat, I mean eating dessert after meal.

Believe me that the recipes you find online are not properly written. A good recipe is supposed to be well described and it is not fully completed until some useful photographs are added to this. Tons of recipes with a very few pictures can be found online which I say “bad recipe ever”. When it comes to taking about the quality then you should rely on a cookbook which could reveal everything – from in detail description to many photographs that you desperately need to be a GOOD/EXPERT cook. By the way, the following dessert cookbooks would help you find out the variety of Japanese desserts and sweets recipes that could blow your Christmas Holiday especially at Dinner.

1) Definitive Edition Wagashi Textbook : Thorough Explanation of the Procedures and Basic Skills to Make Japanese Sweets

The Best Wagashi Cookbook Ever Written So Far. Photo Credit: Amazon.com

What is Wagashi? It is a traditional Japanese confectionery made from plant ingredients and served with matcha tea during at a tea ceremony or at home on day time as a snack. However, as you are looking to add a unique recipe to this year Christmas I want you to know the techniques and tools you need to make a sweet wagashi. We eat it not as a dessert but surly you will, won’t you? As you can see the book title itself very long but surprisingly this is what you are going to need for making wagashi at home. Unfortunately, this book is written in Japanese, no English edition. Although, there is good one, not great one which was published in English, it is called Wagashi and More: A Collection of Simple Japanese Dessert Recipes.

Though, if you want to collect a cookbook treasure – like this then who cares! It is a beautifully photographed wagashi cookbook that I bought from book store in Tokyo. Recipes are well described and shown how to do every recipe quite perfectly though photographs and instructions. I don’t own the book because it was presented to my mother as a gift. She loved that! And she told me, this is the best Wagashi cookbook she has ever read. If you can read Japanese then it will be very useful to make wagashi after it is shipped to you directly from Japan. If you have a Japanese friend whom you know and want to present a gift then please consider this cookbook. I know she would be pretty happy to you. Buy it here then.

2) Kyotofu: Uniquely Delicious Japanese Desserts

Learn all the delicious Japanese desserts from this book. Photo Credit: Amazon.com

Before I was going to order this book I was very curious of it. I wanted to see how the author Nicole Bermensolo has presented her recipes in this cookbook. My experience with this book was absolutely as delicious as a piece of sweet Sakuramochi. A special thank to the author Nicole for publishing and writing this great Japanese dessert cookbook. Many of the recipes turn out to be mixed Western and Japanese style recipes which sort of a unique way to present something that you should try.

A lot of recipes to learn!

This book is illustrated with very useful photographs. Traditional Japanese ingredients are used such as miso, soy milk and tofu to introduce them into many recipes. What to make healthier dessert at home? Oh my dear there is no fear when you have this book beside you in the kitchen. The book helps you what to buy and where to buy as a necessary tools and ingredients with some very helpful advice. You will be learning how to make cheesecake, American sweets, and muffins with Japanese ingredients, green tea with chocolate cupcakes and other mouthwatering dishes. Don’t wait anymore; get your book here right away.

3) Deco Cakes!

Take a look at the variety of decorated Swiss rolls cakes, they sound very yummy. Photo Credit: Amazon.com

Different shapes and sizes of cake can be found across Japan. Some of the traditional Japanese cakes are too cute not to take a bite of it. How cruel! Nowadays cake bakers are busy making brand new design of cakes which could turn out their online blog even better and popular. I don’t know if JUNKO/Junko Katoh – the author of Deco Cakes! had attempted the same. However, her cookbook Deco Cakes! has been well reputed to many foodies around the world.

Open the book and then feels like you smell a sweet fragrance coming off the cake recipes printed in the book. There are beautiful illustrations in this book and about 32 of her most festival and stylish cake rolls which are considered to be all-occasion cakes. When it comes Christmas, Valentine’s Day or Birthday, there is nothing to worry about since this is the gun that you want to make the occasion very special. You don’t need to be very crafty though when you have this book with you everything would sound to you pretty simple. Buy this here.

4) Soymilk Desserts

Learn Quick & Easy Soymilk Desserts Recipes. Photo Credit: Amazon.com

Soy milk has many health benefits and a popular diary alternative. In Japan, there are many brands of Soymilk can be found. It is said that they have high calcium equivalent to cow’s milk. However, soymilk desserts are quite delicious to eat. Desserts which are made of cow’s milk cannot be eaten by those who are allergic to the proteins of it. In that case, I don’t want you end up your Christmas holiday without eating your favorite desserts. Prefer Soymilk instead of cow’s milk!

The book features 77 sweet recipes from popular chocolate cakes, fruit desserts and pudding to fiber-rich cookies made with tofu byproducts. If you want to pursue a healthy lifestyle then learn all these soymilk dessert recipes which come in very easy and quick styles. No matter what you think of it, I believe this is the best cookbook ever written on Soymilk Dessert. You don’t need variety of ingredients but a very few to make a great soymilk recipes at home. Please get this cookbook now before arrival of Christmas.

5) Okashi: Sweet Treats Made With Love

A great collection of Japanese cakes, cookies and pastries recipes books. Photo Credit: Amazon.com

Nothing beats Japanese confectionery. That’s 100% true! Japanese confectionery goes with little sugar and creates a wide range of yummy desserts based on western traditions. I first read this book at Yuki’s house; she usually collects variety of recipe books as I collect manga. I noticed that the book is pretty illustrated with eye-catching photographs. This books shares a lot of ideas on how to use Japanese ingredients in French style pastry. Honestly, this is one of the best Japanese sweet making confections cookbooks. Learn how to make Japanese chiffon cake, muffin, Japanese style tiramisu, Green tea Chiffon, tart, Swiss rolls, and variety of Japanese sponge cake recipes. These are pretty simple and can be done with a little preparation.

This is a beautiful and wonderfully designed book with great recipes that you must try during any holiday season. If you do love Japanese cuisine and want to learn something new then I highly suggest you to read this book. A lot of useful information on essential baking equipment you need, step by step baking instruction with pictures and hand-notes are given for each recipe. I don’t care if you are experienced baker or as beginner as a new leaf, just make sure you have passion for learning Japanese culinary. Get inspired reading it and then share your experience with your friends and family. I recommend this book to collect for this year Christmas. Collect it from here.

Japanese Desserts and Your Desire

A large number of Japanese desserts can be found throughout Japan. Their flavors, sizes, shapes, tastes could vary from one place to other places in Japan. For example local delicacy Kamaboko Fish Cake is very popular confectionery in Otaru city, Hokkaido. You may think this as your dessert but Japanese would just think it as sweet. Just head to a grocery store in Otaru and have some of it. That’s simple! If you ever come to Japan please don’t leave without eating a Mochi (rice cake). If visiting Meiji Shrine is a must think to do in Tokyo then having a piece of Mochi is a think to eat.

Dango with Mitarashi Sauce. Photo Credit: isaac’licious at Flickr.

I can tell you a lot of desserts names such as Coffee jelly, Karukan, Uiro, Hakuto Jelly, Manju, Namagashi, Yokan, Hanabiramochi, Castella, Dango, Sakuramochi, and Higashi – that’s it! The list is getting bigger. I have reviewed only the top five Japanese desserts making cookbooks. You can start learning all these recipes one after another. Please don’t rush but you have to have a passion to learn them all in future. It would be awesome if you collect one of this for this year Christmas and try to make some. Find some great traditional Japanese recipes here. Good luck to you. It is cold here; I better have a bowl of rice now.

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